mamachef82

I had the Bod Pod body composition test done at my surgeon's office to get a baseline for the "before" surgery stats. I am 336 lbs, and my lean body mass is 180 lbs. To be at 22% body fat with that much lean mass, puts me at 230 lbs. as a goal weight, possibly 240 lbs. I'm female,5'8" and and have a solid structure, but 180 lbs of bone and muscle? Do you lose muscle during the rapid weight loss after surgery? The guy who ran the test on me said I was the most dense woman he had ever seen.

I don't plan on losing muscle mass, I'm just surprised how high my goal weight is. It's kind of a relief to think that I only have 105 lbs to lose as opposed to the 160 lbs that I originally thought I needed to lose. I haven't met with my surgeon or nut. since I had the test done on Friday, but I have an appointment with my nut. on Tuesday. I'm sure it will be ok. I'm not married to a number on the scale- more whether or not I can keep up with my kids and how I feel in my body. Thanks for your input!

I'm also using Dr. Kaufman at the Puget Sound Bariatrics. He is so incredibly personable, non judgmental and very upbeat and positive. The whole staff at their location wants you to succeed and makes it a great place to be. Because they just do bariatric surgery, they have all the amenities to make larger people feel comfortable, so you're no squeezing into small uncomfortable chairs, etc.

I had months like that too, but it's totally fixable! I'm thru with my 6 months, but I only logged about half the time. Instead of saying I have to eat super perfect AND log, I just said "no matter what I eat, I'm going to write it down". Because the habit of tracking is going to be essential post op to maximize weight loss with the sleeve. I think of it as being nice to my post op self by developing as many good habits now that I won't have to struggle with while I'm weak and hungry and dealing with so many other changes. Set "future you" up for success and use My Fitness Pal every time you take a bite. I'm on a 70 day login streak with MFP and I feel really good about it! And trust me, I had a couple 4,000-5,000 calorie days. Better to acknowledge and move on.

I just had a long conversation with one of my coworkers today about it and my decision to pursue the surgery. She was so excited for me and said that she knew I would do really well. I usually get that reaction though. My approach is that I say that I have completed the six month medically supervised diet and exercise portion to get insurance approval and that I'm working with a bariatric surgeon to complete the rest of the evaluations and tests to be able to schedule surgery. And I say that I am proud of myself for taking control of my health. That's all it takes for me to get thru to a person.

I tell everyone! It's my approach that keeps them from being so judgmental. I say that I'm taking control of my health and will be having the surgery as a tool to ensure that I don't suffer from health issues farther down the line. I don't believe it's the easy way out, and having tried so many different methods, I need to use the most medically proven effective method to get my health back. I'm 33 with 2 kids and I could leave them way too early if I don't get my priorities straight. Not one single person has given me a hard time, but rather offer positive reassuring words and sometimes even have a friend or relative that have also benefited from the surgery. Occasionally they have a story of someone who lost weight then gained it all back- but that won't be me!

I'm still preop but I've realized how many habits I have/had that reinforced my perpetual obesity. Making time for meals was one of them. I used to be "too busy" to have a sit down meal. I just made it a priority... Rather I made myself a priority. I now eat breakfast, lunch and dinner even if one of them ends up being a Premier protein shake or hard boiled eggs and some carrot sticks. Think about all of the habits that you have that keep you heavy. Do you drive instead of walk? Do you rely on convenience food or eating out instead of cooking? Do you reward yourself with food? Start with one good habit a week- whether it's eating more fruits and veggies, or tracking your food no matter how many calories you eat, etc. you can't sustain perfection from the get go, so try one positive thing a week and work up from there.

I have been using my Fitbit Flex every day. I bought a generic magnetized clip to wear it on my bra or shirt when I don't want to wear the bracelet. My husband and I always try to get our 10,000 steps and use the challenges on the app. He doesn't even own a Fitbit, but the iPhone activity tracker syncs with the Fitbit app. I have been using my fitness pal regularly for about 2 months and I love how it syncs with the Fitbit! I'm happy with my current set up and look forward to monitoring my progress after surgery.

I was 310 after I had my second and shot up to 355 before I went back to work and have gotten down to 337 now with a couple of months of tracking my food every day and getting my 10,000 steps every day. I'm not perfect, but I'm better and more capable than I was a year ago. good luck!!

I'm still preop- but I've met all my insurance's requirements and now just have to get cleared for surgery by the psychologist, pulmonary specialist, nutritionist and physical therapist. Once the surgeon puts in the request for final approval from the insurance company, they say they make the decision in 2 weeks. My insurance only required me to talk with my doctor 3 times and get weighed- that was considered the 6 month medically supervised diet. No weight loss required. I also had to talk to a case worker with the insurance company's bariatric program every month. Once I completed the six months, I was referred on to the surgeon. I was in a situation a similar to yours- I had a baby and gained 40 pounds pretty quickly after he was born. I realized pretty early on in the six month "program" that I had developed so many habits to reinforce my dependency on food. I'm a chef by profession and used every excuse to eat and graze throughout the day, and never really have a meal, but ate nonstop after getting home from work. Now I have breakfast lunch and dinner, and track every single bite with My Fitness Pal. Even when I go 1,500 calories over my goal, I still track it. Who else am I lying to besides myself when I don't track everything? I'm trying to do everything I can to form better habits before the surgery so it's not so hard afterwards when I'm already struggling with my limited food choices. I see it as being nice to future me. Be proud of every good thing you do, and actively make good choices to reinforce that positive self talk. And most importantly, everything takes time. My surgeon requires Full payment of the copay before surgery.